If you sell managed services, then you need a point person with the right technical, business, and people skills to help make the sale and design customer solutions. That role is often referred to as the virtual CIO, or VCIO. This person will essentially personify your company and the services you offer to the client. Clearly, it’s important that you hire the right candidate for the VCIO job.
Your main challenge will be finding a qualified candidate. Not many people can handle the VCIO role, and the temptation to hire someone who is not qualified but you hope can grow into the role will be great. Resist that temptation and keep looking for the person that has the qualities below.
The Right Experience
A lot of people can architect, set up, and maintain a network. You want someone capable of handling the wide range of needs that your clients will present to you. A candidate who has been successful at one or two companies and has not been thrust into a lot of new situations might not be able to address every client’s needs or to find new ways to add value for them.
Ask each candidate about the types of projects they’ve done and focus on how they handled new challenges. You might also present them with scenarios similar to what you see from your customers and ask how they would approach them.
Listening Skills
A successful VCIO takes the time to understand a client’s pain points and objectives. That means letting the key stakeholders talk about their challenges and what they want to accomplish. You don’t want a know-it-all who jumps to conclusions too soon.
Pay attention to how each candidate behaves during the interview process. Someone who does all the talking or cuts off other people who are speaking might be a red flag.
Good with People
A VCIO typically enters the sales process late, after the sales team has qualified clients to the point where they want specifics on what you can do for them. It’s important that the VCIO makes a good first impression and is capable of building good relationships. You want to see signs of good people skills during the interview process. Try not to let someone’s excellent technical skills outweigh sub-par people skills.
Business Acumen
The end goal for your clients is to improve their business performance. The VCIO should be able to envision how IT can enable a business to achieve its goals. It’s critical that the person you hire has experience working with the business side to build systems that support business processes. Someone without that interaction likely won’t be able to speak the language.
Instills Confidence
A candidate that meets all of the above criteria will be best able to make your clients feel confident in your company and the services you provide–your ultimate goal. When a VCIO can make a connection, speak with authority, and demonstrate that he or she understands the clients’ business, you have the level of trust needed to build a long-term relationship with your clients.
